


and the stars do not care

by madkingbird



Series: twitter threads [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Canon Compliant, Hurt No Comfort, M/M, Mention of Shiro's Husband, One-Sided Attraction, Post-Voltron, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-14
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:55:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23138827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madkingbird/pseuds/madkingbird
Summary: Shiro separates from his husband and goes back to the stars. He explores the universe, helps planets in need, and tries to find a place where he belongs.Months later, he receives an invitation to the wedding of Keith Kogane and his Galran partner.
Relationships: (one-sided), Keith/Galra OC, Keith/Shiro (Voltron), keith/oc
Series: twitter threads [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1656442
Comments: 24
Kudos: 120
Collections: UnrequitedLoveORareThey





	and the stars do not care

**Author's Note:**

> This is another one of my twitter threads I decided to post on here. Really short, of course, and I've kept it mostly the same. I did add a few things and of course, fixed the mistakes I saw, but I just really wanted this out here :)!
> 
> **WARNINGS: Mention of Shiro's Husband, Sorta Canon Compliant, Keith/Galra OC, Hurt NO Comfort.**

Shiro separates from his husband and goes back to the stars. He explores the universe, helps planets in need, and tries to find a place where he belongs.

Months later, he receives an invitation to the wedding of Keith Kogane and his Galran partner.

And that’s when he realizes that he hasn’t really _talked_ to Keith, not like they used to. He didn’t even know that Keith was dating someone, and now he’s finding out through a wedding invitation.

(Are they still even best friends?)

He sets the invitation aside, but his eyes keep finding it whenever he’s in his quarters. His fingers trace over the elegant cursive that spells out Keith’s name, printed in dark purple on the card. He doesn’t even look twice at the other name on there.

Shiro doesn’t know why his chest aches.

“Are you going to the wedding?” Pidge asks during their video call a few days later, looking concerned.

(Why?)

“I don’t know,” Shiro answers. His answer should have been ‘yes,’ but something in his heart seems to suppress his instinctual agreement. “Probably.”

“Are you going to the wedding?” Hunk asks during their video call a couple of weeks later, looking at him with pity.

(Why?)

“I don’t know,” Shiro answers. He glances away, unable to handle this sort of look from his friend, and busies himself with his datapad. “Probably.”

“Are you going to the wedding?” Lance asks during their video call a month later, looking sympathetic.

(He’s sick of this.)

“I don’t know,” Shiro answers through gritted teeth. “Probably.”

Lance narrows his eyes. “You better,” he warns.

“Are you coming to the wedding?” Keith asks when they see each other half a year later. He looks expectantly at Shiro, eyes sparkling in the light.

(He looks happy.)

“Of course,” Shiro promises and manages to smile. “I’ll be there.” He could never deny Keith a thing, even if it kills him.

Then comes the wedding.

There are last-minute preparations occurring and everyone’s rushing all over the place. Shiro soon finds himself standing outside Keith’s room after someone tells him that Keith is a bit nervous and won’t you please go talk to him, Admiral Shirogane, please?

Shiro knocks gently, waiting for Keith’s soft voice to beckon him into the room before entering.

Keith’s sitting on the edge of the bed, fiddling with his thumbs and looking rather pale. Shiro stands there for a moment, struck dumb by the sight of Keith—long hair pulled up and tied into intricate braid work, wearing a gown that speaks of his heritage and brings out his eyes—before he shakes his head and takes a seat beside him.

“I don’t even know why I’m so nervous,” Keith says with a short laugh, nails digging into his palms. He looks over at Shiro, desperation and hope in his eyes. “Were you nervous at your wedding?”

“A little,” Shiro admits, grasping Keith’s hands with his own. He slowly unfurls Keith’s fingers, brushing a thumb over the indents left behind, as if that’ll erase the marks. “I think everyone’s nervous on their wedding day, but they still manage to make it to the altar by the end of it.”

He doesn’t mention the doubts he harbored in his mind, the ones that increased his nerves and nearly made him sick hours before he was supposed to be married. Shiro doesn’t mention the regret that had momentarily swept over him, nearly sending him running for the nearest ship.

“You love him, right?” Shiro asks next. The words feel like ashes in his mouth.

Keith shoots him an indecipherable look. “I do,” he answers, glancing down at their joined hands. He then speaks in a quiet voice, as if telling a secret, “I think he loves me more, though.”

Shiro hates his own curiosity. “Why do you say that?”

Keith doesn’t respond right away, still staring at their hands. When he finally talks, his voice is soft and distant, “It took me years to reach this point, you know? He was so patient and understanding, even when we weren’t dating. He—” Keith pauses, the corner of his mouth lifting. “He helped me get over some hurt feelings, and I guess that’s when I started seeing him in a different light.” He huffs out a laugh. “He loved me first, and I loved him later—all because my heart was still raw.”

Shiro doesn’t say a word, enthralled by Keith’s words, by the emotions flashing across his face—pain, sorrow, relief, joy. Keith doesn’t seem to mind the lack of response, and they continue to sit with their hands clasped together as Keith keeps talking.

“There was a period in my life where I thought I’d never be happy again,” he says with a rueful smile. “And he helped me see that I could make my own happiness, that I didn’t have to wait around with some false hope that tied me to one person.”

“Sounds like you love him,” Shiro says jokingly, ignoring the nauseating tumble in his stomach. “Maybe you should get married.” He dodges the kick that Keith aims at his ankles and asks, “What are you so worried about, then?”

Keith shrugs.

“From what you’ve told me, it sounds like you make each other really happy,” Shiro continues. “Trust in that happiness, and trust that he’ll continue to make you happy until the end of his days.” He offers a smile, and it feels real. “You’ll make it work, Keith. I know you will.”

And just like that, Keith relaxes.

Shiro should have expected it, really, but he’s still surprised when Keith releases his hands to embrace him. He wraps his arms around Keith and shuts his eyes, so focused on the warmth he’s emanating. Shiro missed it so much.

“Thank you, Shiro,” Keith says in his ear, and Shiro fights the urge to shudder (where did that come from?).

Someone knocks on the door, and Krolia walks in after they’ve separated from their hugs. She nods at Shiro in greeting, then gazes at Keith with a soft smile.

“It’s time,” she says.

Shiro walks with them down the hall, stopping at the two doors that lead into the room where Keith will get married. Krolia steps away for a moment, talking to Kolivan, and he watches as Keith lets out a slow breath.

“You’ll be fine,” Shiro assures, dropping a hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “I know it seems like the hardest thing in the world right now but once you start making your way down the aisle and see your partner…” He smiles. “It’ll become the easiest thing you’ve ever face.”

“Speaking from experience?” Keith asks jokingly, but he stands up straighter and seems more at ease.

Shiro’s just about ready to go, to head into the room where he’ll sit down and watch Keith get married to someone Shiro doesn’t know, when Keith makes a contemplative noise. It catches his attention and he glances over at Keith, who’s not even looking at him. 

Keith’s fiddling with one of his undone cuffs when he says, off-handedly, “Actually, I think the hardest thing in the world was getting over you.”

Somehow, Shiro makes his way into the next room and sits in the front row with the other Paladins. They glance at him with concern (Pidge), pity (Hunk), and sympathy (Lance and Allura) from time to time.

He still doesn’t understand why they’re looking at him like that, but he figures it out soon enough.

The realization hits when he’s watching Keith walk down the aisle, arm in arm with his partner. He looks so happy, so radiant, and so in love. When he’s standing at the altar, holding his partner’s hands, he has the most tender smile on his face when he speaks his vows. 

Everyone around him is clapping, cheering, when they finally kiss, and there’s not one dry eye in the room.

Shiro’s crying, too, but it’s not out of happiness like everyone else. Something inside him is breaking, and it’s because he just realized that he’s in love with Keith Kogane.

He’s in love with Keith Kogane, but he’s too late.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry!
> 
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/viribirb)


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